Eye Sightings

The Consumer Eyes Blog

Category: Consumer Cohorts (Boomers, Teens, Parents etc)

Many consumers in the Gen X and younger range don't have the time or the know-how to cook. For them, Martha Stewart is beyond aspirational.

Enter Donna Hay - domestic goddess for a new generation, the Microwave Generation. Hay teaches a relaxed approach to cooking. Her books include 'New Food Fast,' in which recipes are classified according to cooking time (none more than 30-minutes) and more recently, 'Off the Shelf,' which advises on how to stock a pantry and then combine fresh ingredients with pantry staples for fast, delicious meals.

Technology has moved into the bar space, in a way that's more "Real World" than cyber café.

Remote Lounge in New York City is being called everything from a techno pleasure palace to a multi-media art gallery. Live video feeds and interactive digital art make up the décor. Patrons are required to check their privacy at door, since the bar is filled with dozens of cameras. Those seated at one of the bar's "Cocktail Consoles" can remotely control the cameras, zooming in to peer more closely at whatever or whomever they choose.

A 46-year-old Japanese method for teaching mathematics seems to be taking the U.S. by storm.

The method, which started in Japan and is now taught at more than 24,600 franchises around the world, resembles more boot camp than classroom. Kids are taught math in tiny increments, and are not allowed to proceed to the next lesson until the previous is mastered flawlessly.

Worshipping the goddess sounds more like an offshoot of the teen Wiccan trend than what it really is - the latest (and increasingly ubiquitous) way of celebrating all things female. And of stealing from the past.

Belly dancing classes are gaining popularity, but not as a mere exercise form. Today's belly dancers (and we found them even in towns like Rochester, NY and rural towns in NJ) cry out goals such as "Let your spirit soar!" and "Adorn yourself as the goddess that you are."

It used to be that consumers wanted what they couldn't afford. Now, it's clear they want what they can't have. Or at least what's very hard to get.

Nowhere is there a better example of this than in fashion. Recently, we traveled to Japan, the home of some of the globe's most inspired street fashions. It didn't take long for us to figure out that the more underground the "look," the more in demand it was for Tokyo's uber-hipsters.

We're hearing about how people are flocking to houses of worship in droves. Everywhere, churches, temples and mosques are filled to capacity. We're searching, it seems, for some spiritual meaning in all of this turmoil.

Well, even if the faithful don't find meaning, they may at least find something to buy. There's a trend among churches -- mixing business with worship. In some cases, it's about attracting more parishioners. In others, it's more about commerce and convenience.

When it comes to back to school fashions, many clothing retailers are eager to separate the men from the boys.

Abercrombie & Fitch, the premiere clothing line for young hipsters, began to worry when their regular line developed an outdated, "teeny bopper" image that turned off their college-student target market. Their answer was to roll out Hollister, a new clothing store catering to 14- to 18-year-olds.

MetaMorph Me - Consumer Eyes trend referring to consumers' desires to periodically reinvent themselves (physically and otherwise) in order to refresh their outlook. Some manifestations include the rise in plastic surgery, personality altering drugs, and second and third careers.

Most consumers who visit spas expect some health benefits - relaxation, weight loss, stress management tips, to name a few. But the latest crop of spas are blurring health and medicine in brand new ways. They're known as medical spas. In addition to the traditional spa amenties (serene settings, massages, gyms, hiking, golfing), they also include an onsite medical facility staffed with doctors and nurses. Spa-goers have the option of enjoying just the "usual" or, for an additional fee, they can undergo medical tests such as electrocardiograms, ultrasounds, cholesterol screenings and more.